Processors And Chipsets

Front 1

Advanced Transfer Cache (ATC)

Back 1

A type of L2 cache contained within the Pentium processor housing that is embedded on the same core processor die as the CPU itself.

Front 2

back-side bus (BSB)

Back 2

The bus between the CPU and the L2 cache inside the CPU housing.

Front 3

bus frequency

Back 3

The speed, or frequency, at which the data on the motherboard is written and read.

Front 4

complex instruction set computing (CISC)

Back 4

Earlier CPU type of instruction set.

Front 5

cooler

Back 5

A combination cooling fan and heat sink mounted on the top or side of a processor to keep it cool.

Front 6

data path

Back 6

The number of bits transported into and out of the processor.

Front 7

discrete L2 cache

Back 7

A type of L2 cache contained within the Pentium processor housing, but on a different die, with a cache bus between the processor and the cache.

Front 8

dual inline package (DIP) switch

Back 8

A miniature circuit board installed on a motherboard to hold memory. DIMMs can hold up to 2 GB of RAM on a single module.

Front 9

dual-core processing

Back 9

Two processors contained in the same processor housing that share the interface with the chipset and memory.

Front 10

dual-voltage processor

Back 10

A CPU that requires two different voltages, one for internal processing and the other for I/O processing.

Front 11

Execution Trace Cache

Back 11

A type of Level 1 cache used by some CPUs to hold decoded operations waiting to be executed.

Front 12

explicitly parallel instruction computing (EPIC)

Back 12

The CPU architecture used by the Intel Itanium chip that bundles programming instructions with instructions on how to use multiprocessing abilities to do two instructions in parallel.

Front 13

external cache

Back 13

Static cache memory, stored on the motherboard or inside the CPU housing, that is not part of the CPU (also called L2 or L3 cache).

Front 14

front-side bus (FSB)

Back 14

Another term for the system bus.

Front 15

heat sink

Back 15

A piece of metal, with cooling fins, that can be attached to or mounted on an integrated chip (such as the CPU) to dissipate heat.

Front 16

internal bus

Back 16

The bus inside the CPU that is used for communication between the CPU’s internal components.

Front 17

internal cache

Back 17

Memory cache that is faster than external cache, and is contained inside CPU chips (also referred to as primary, Level 1, or L1 cache).

Front 18

land grid array (LGA)

Back 18

A feature of a CPU socket whereby pads, called lands, are used to make contact in uniform rows over the socket. Compare to pin grid array (PGA).

Front 19

Level 1 (L1) cache

Back 19

A type of internal cache.

Front 20

Level 2 (L2) cache

Back 20

A type of internal cache.

Front 21

Level 3 (L3) cache

Back 21

A type of internal cache.

Front 22

low insertion force (LIF) sockets

Back 22

A socket that requires the installer to manually apply an even force over the microchip when inserting the chip into the socket.

Front 23

memory cache

Back 23

A small amount of faster RAM that stores recently retrieved data, in anticipation of what the CPU will request next, thus speeding up access. See also system bus.

Front 24

microcode

Back 24

A programming instruction that can be executed by a CPU without breaking the instruction down into simpler instructions. Typically, a single command line in a Visual Basic or C++ program must be broken down into numerous microcode commands.

Front 25

motherboard bus

Back 25

Another term for system bus.

Front 26

multiplier

Back 26

The factor by which the bus speed or frequency is multiplied to get the CPU clock speed.

Front 27

multiprocessor platform

Back 27

A system that contains more than one processor. The motherboard has more than one processor socket and the processors must be rated to work in this multi-processor environment.

Front 28

North Bridge

Back 28

That portion of the chipset hub that connects faster I/O buses (for example, AGP bus) to the system bus. Compare to South Bridge.

Front 29

On-Package L2 cache

Back 29

L2 cache packaged separately from the CPU, but still able to run at the same clock speed.

Front 30

overclocking

Back 30

Running a processor at a higher frequency than is recommended by the manufacturer, which can result in an unstable system, but is a popular thing to do when a computer is used for gaming.

Front 31

pin grid array (PGA)

Back 31

A feature of a CPU socket whereby the pins are aligned in uniform rows around the socket.

Front 32

primary cache

Back 32

Another term for internal cache.

Front 33

processor frequency

Back 33

The speed, or frequency, at which the CPU operates. Usually expressed in GHz.

Front 34

reduced instruction set computing (RISC)

Back 34

Chips that incorporate only the most frequently used instructions, so that the computer operates faster (for example, the PowerPC uses RISC chips).

Front 35

single-voltage processors

Back 35

A CPU that requires one voltage for both internal and I/O operations.

Front 36

South Bridge

Back 36

That portion of the chipset hub that connects slower I/O buses (for example, an ISA bus) to the system bus. Compare to North Bridge.

Front 37

staggered pin grid array (SPGA)

Back 37

A feature of a CPU socket whereby the pins are staggered over the socket in order to squeeze more pins into a small space.

Front 38

static RAM (SRAM)

Back 38

RAM chips that retain information without the need for refreshing, as long as the computer’s power is on. They are more expensive than traditional DRAM.

Front 39

system bus

Back 39

The bus between the CPU and memory on the motherboard. The bus frequency in documentation is called the system speed, such as 400 MHz. Also called the memory bus, front-side bus, local bus, or host bus.

Front 40

voltage regulator module (VRM)

Back 40

A device embedded or installed on the motherboard that regulates voltage to the processor.

Front 41

word size

Back 41

The number of bits that can be processed by a CPU at one time.

Front 42

zero insertion force (ZIF) sockets

Back 42

A socket that uses a small lever to apply even force when you install the microchip into the socket.